China is expected to launch its fifth crewed spaceflight in June 2013 on the second and final manned mission to the Tiangong-1 prototype space lab.
China's Shenzhou 10 spacecraft will liftoff with three crew members, including, according to reports, a female "taikonaut," to dock with the orbiting module.
The spacecraft's carrier rocket, an advanced Long March 2-F, arrived at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on May 2, according to the state-run Xinhua news service.
Credit: Xinhua
Tiangong-1 was launched in September 2011. Two months later, the unmanned Shenzhou 8 spacecraft demonstrated the nation's first rendezvous and docking capabilities.
In June 2012, the crewed Shenzhou 9 mission performed China's first piloted docking with the Tiangong-1 module.